George Pell Ignored Pleas of Ballarat Sex Abuse Victim, Court Told

By Mark Russell
The Courier
February 6, 2015

http://www.thecourier.com.au/story/2866695/george-pell-ignored-pleas-of-ballarat-sex-abuse-victim-court-told/?cs=61

A victim preyed on by a Christian brother who was part of a notorious pedophile ring involving the clergy in the Victorian town of Ballarat claimed George Pell, the former Archbishop of Sydney, ignored his pleas to stop the abuse, a court has heard.

Crown prosecutor Brett Sonnet told the County Court on Friday that the victim of pedophile brother Ted Dowlan, 65, alleged he was at a local Ballarat swimming pool in 1973 when he approached Dr Pell to try to discuss the abuse.

The victim claimed he told Dr Pell, who is now head of the Vatican's finances, something had to be done to stop Dowlan abusing young boys at St Patrick's College.

Dr Pell allegedly replied: "Don't be ridiculous."

Dr Pell has consistently denied knowing children were being abused in Ballarat during the time he was there.

Dowlan, who changed his name by deed poll to Bales in 2011, pleaded guilty on Friday to 33 counts of indecently assaulting boys under the age of 16 and one count of gross indecency between 1971-86 involving 20 victims.

Mr Sonnet said Dowlan had used his position as a teacher at a number of Catholic schools run by the Christian Brothers order to prey on his victims.

He was teaching at Ballarat's St Alpius primary school in 1971 with other pedophile brothers including Robert Best, Stephen Farrell and Gerald Fitzgerald. Gerald Ridsdale, Australia's worst pedophile priest, was the school's chaplain.

Dowlan admitted abusing boys at St Alpius in 1971; St Thomas More College in Forest Hills (1972); St Patrick's College in Ballarat (1973-74); Warrnambool Christian Brothers College (1975-76); Chanel College, Geelong (1980); and Cathedral College, East Melbourne (1982-1988).

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Mr Sonnet said the Christian Brothers were aware of what Dowlan was doing and did not act to stop him.

The prosecutor said Dowlan was moved from school to school, which only "aggravated the problem".

Dowlan was eventually jailed in 1996 for six-and-a-half years with a four-year minimum for abusing 11 boys between 1971 and 1982.

He was not thrown out of the Christian Brothers order, which had paid his legal fees, until 2008. Dowlan was arrested last year by the police Sano taskforce, set up to investigate claims arising from the Victorian parliamentary inquiry into child sex abuse, after more victims had come forward.

Mr Sonnet told the court on Friday, Dowlan would punish his students with a leather strap, and then sexually abuse them while supposedly comforting them.

Dowlan would at times abuse the victims at the back of the classroom and tell the other children not to turn around.

Mr Sonnet described Dowlan as a "trusted religious figure" who had been extraordinarily brazen in his conduct because he was confident he would never be challenged.

Dowlan told one victim that everything was OK because "everybody sins".

He whispered to another victim that he would fail in life because God would punish him for the acts they were committing.

His colleague, Ridsdale, who admitted abusing at least 53 children between 1961 to 1982, was jailed for an extra eight years in 2014 after new victims came forward.

When Ridsdale appeared for the first time in the Melbourne Magistrates Court in May 1993 to face sexual abuse charges, Cardinal Pell was by his side for support.

Ridsdale had shared a house with Dr Pell for about a year from early 1973 at the St Alpius Presbytery, next door to the primary school, at Ballarat.

Dr Pell, then an auxiliary bishop of Melbourne, claimed he had no idea what Ridsdale had been doing.

The pre-sentence hearing for Dowlan continues.